Private MD News

Experts urge diabetes testing

Category: Diabetes

With type 1 diabetes rates on the rise, experts are urging more people to consider blood testing to check for the presence of the illness. This may help detect metabolic problems in millions of people who are unaware that they have them.

Judith Fradkin, of the National Institute of Diabetes and Digestive and Kidney Diseases, told the Wall Street Journal that people who have their condition diagnosed early tend to have more favorable treatment outcomes than those do not. This is why testing is so important.

"There is a real advantage to finding out your risk status," Fradkin told the news source. "There is evidence that people who get screened and find out they are at high risk are less likely to present [at the emergency room] with a severe crisis that is out of control and can be fatal."

In order to encourage more people to get tested, Fradkin's agency is sponsoring nationwide free screening events. Individuals can also go online to order at-home blood tests that check for the presence of type 1 diabetes.

The American Diabetes Association estimates that about 7 million people have undiagnosed diabetes.